Not What You'd Expect
by FireGoddess528
Summary: Markie Curtis, is the cousin of Darry, Sodapop, and Ponyboy. Darry chooses to take Markie in, when thier Aunt Rosalie dies. But Markie is not what the Curtis's and the gang expected.
1. The Phone Call That Changed Everything

Disclaimer: I do not own the Outsiders, or any of the characters in the book. I do however own the characters that I make up.

Not What You'd Expect

Chapter 1: The Phone Call that Changed Everything

Ponyboy and Johnny dashed into the Curtis's house, both boys gasping for air. They were just walking home from the movies, when they noticed the fancy car that was following them. Neither Ponyboy nor Johnny needed to look inside the car to know it was full of socs that most likely outnumbered them. Rather than risk getting into a fight, the boys decided to try to make a run for the Curtis's house.

Johnny pulled the curtain away from the window, to see the socs driving past in their fancy car.

"Looks like we out ran them," said Johnny, his voice full of relief.

"Out ran who?"

Two-bit walked into the living room, a beer bottle in one hand, and a piece of chocolate cake in the other.

"A few socs that tried to jump Johnny and me," Pony answered.

Two-bit grinned, "Well good for you two."

Two-bit flopped down on the couch, and turned the television on to Mickey Mouse. Johnny and Ponyboy joined him, the world of cartoons engulfing the three boys. None of them noticed Darry entering the house, a worried expression on his face. Darry did not stop to scowl Ponyboy for not working on his homework, or Two-bit for having the volume up loud. He simply went into the kitchen, and sat down on a chair, the phone pressed against his ear, as he waited for the ringing to stop, and for someone to answer the phone. The phone rang four times, before a woman with a high pitch voice answered.

"Hello child services, this is Mrs. Chilton speaking."

Darry cringed, "Yeah hi, this is Darry Curtis. You called me at work about twenty five minutes ago."

"Oh yes, I called you about the matter of your Aunt Rosalie, and your cousin Markie."

Darry was confused; he had not seen or heard his Aunt Rosalie in over sixteen years, and he did not remember having a cousin.

"I think you have the wrong family, 'cause I haven't seen my aunt since I was five, and I don't have a cousin either."

"There is no mistake. It was clearly stated in your aunt's will that if anything happened to her, that Markie would be sent to live with Rosalie's family in Tulsa. Now if you don't want to take Markie in as I expect you don't, we can always place Markie in a home, or find that a foster family that would be willing to-"

"No," Darry said, cutting Mrs. Chilton off. "I'll take Markie in."

Darry's sudden response surprised Mrs. Chilton.

"Are sure Mr. Curtis? I am aware that you are already taking care of you two brothers. Will you be able to handle another teenager?"

Darry was becoming more and more frustrated with Mrs. Chilton. He had already gone through a similar situation, when social services asked if he wanted to take custody of Sodapop and Ponyboy. When would these social workers learn that when a person said yes, they meant yes.

"Yes I'm sure. Can you tell me when Markie is coming so I can prepare."

Darry spent another twenty minutes on the phone, finding out all the details he would need to know about Markie's arrival.

"See you in two days Mr. Cutis. Goodbye."

"Bye."

The line went dead, and Darry hung the phone back up. He was still in shock from finding out that he had a cousin that he never knew existed. As far as he knew, his parents did not even know about Markie. There was no talk about Aunt Rosalie being pregnant, no phone calls, no letters, not even a picture of his cousin.

"Two-bit, turn the TV off!" Darry barked.

The entire gang looked up from what they had just been watching on the TV. Two-bit, Pony, and Johnny had been joined by Soda and Steve who just got off from work, and Dally who claimed he had nothing better to do. Sodapop got up and turned the TV off, sensing something was wrong, by the way Darry just yelled to turn off the TV.

"Darry, what's wrong." Sodapop asked.

"Yeah man, what's up with you yelling to turn the TV off?"

"Shut up Two-bit!"

Two-bit stuck his tongue out at Darry, before taking another sip of his beer.

Darry took a deep breath, preparing himself to tell the entire gang about Markie.

"I was just on the phone with social services."

Sodapop felt Ponyboy shudder when Darry said social services. Soda placed an arm around his younger brother's shoulders, knowing he was thinking that social services wanted to put him and Soda in a home.

"We have an aunt named Rosalie, out father's sister. She lives in Philadelphia and-"

Sodapop cut him off.

"They aren't making us move in with her are they?"

Before Darry could even answer Soda, the rest of the gang began yelling about how they would not let them leave, and they could stay in their homes if they needed to.

"You guys were not moving in with our aunt!" Darry yelled over the noise.

"Then what did they want?" Steve asked.

"If you all stop interrupting me I would tell you all."

The gang went silent, waiting for Darry to continue.

"Our Aunt is dead, but I wasn't told how she died. But I was told she had a sixteen year old named Markie, who doesn't have a home or anyone to look after him. The social worker said they don't know who the father is, and she asked if I would take Markie in, and I said yes."

The gang went silent, Darry's last words still playing over in their heads. Everyone knew it was hard for the Curtis's after they lost their parents. But they had each other and the gang to look for support. Markie had no one.

"When's he gonna get here?" Johnny asked.

"Two days."

"That's not a lot of notice," Dally pointed out.

"Yeah well we'll have to deal with what we have," Darry said.

"Well I'm excited about this," Soda said, bouncing up and down on the couch. "Who knew we even had a cousin at all. Looks like I get another little brother."

Everyone smiled at Soda's goofiness. As it got alter, Steve and Dally left, saying they would defiantly be at the house when Markie arrived. Two-bit and Johnny chose to sleep over, Johnny on the couch, and Two-bit on the floor. Ponyboy tried to go to sleep, but Soda was too busy talking about the new Curtis and Christmas being just around the corner.

Ponyboy put his pillow over his head.

_I hope Markie can deal with Soda's mouth_, he thought as he drifted off to sleep.


	2. Markie Curtis

Not What You'd Expect

Chapter 2: Markie Curtis

"Flight 497 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Tulsa, Oklahoma has landed. I repeat flight 497, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Tulsa, Oklahoma has landed. Thank you."

"Darry, that's his flight! Markie's here!"

Sodapop jumped off the plastic seat he was sitting on at the Terminal where he and his two brothers Darry, and Ponyboy were suppose to pick up their cousin Markie. Of the three brothers, Sodapop was the most excited about meeting the cousin none of them knew existed.

"Don't forget were going to the Dingo after we get his bags," Soda reminded Darry. "And me and Ponyboy are gonna show him around after he meets the gang, right Pone?"

"Soda, he had a long flight. I'm sure when we get back to the house Markie's gonna wanna relax," Darry said.

"Well we'll just have to ask him when he gets off," Soda shot back. "Ponyboy you got that sign we made?"

"Yeah, it's right here," he said, taking a small handmade sign out of the bag he was carrying.

Sodapop was concerned that Mrs. Chilton would not know recognize Darry, and think he had forgotten about Markie. So he and Ponyboy got a piece of paper, and a black marker, and made a sign which read:

**WELCOME TO TULSA MARKIE! **

"Is the sign really necessary?" Darry asked.

"Yes it is," Soda, answered.

"Darry, Soda, they're letting people off," Pony said, catching his brothers attention.

All three of them watched as people walked into the Terminal, all three of them looking for a sixteen year old boy who beard some sort of resemblance to them.

"Hey I think that's him!"

"Nah, he's too old."

"What about him?"

"To young."

"Him! That's Markie!"

"That's a girl!"

"Huh, so it is. She is kind of cute though."

"Sodapop Curtis we're looking for our cousin, not for girls," Darry scowled.

Soda shrugged his shoulders, "Can't help it that I notice cute girls."

Darry started to say something back, when he felt someone tap him on his shoulder. He turned around, to see a short, grey haired woman in her late forties. Her mouth was a tight line, which Darry doubted ever turned into a smile.

"Mr. Curtis, I assume."

Darry recognized the high pitch voice, and knew instantly that this was Mrs. Chilton.

"Yes, but I go by Darry normally."

He offered his large hand for her to shack, but she only stared at it with disgust. Darry got the message, and pulled his hand back.

"Yes, well let me take you to where I left Markie, and you can grab her bags and leave. I will be sending the papers you need to sign so you can become her legal guardian in a few weeks."

Ponyboy noticed something odd about what Mrs. Chilton said. Darry had said Markie was a boy, yet Mrs. Chilton had called Markie a she. Unless Markie was somehow both a boy and girl, Pony guessed that Darry had gotten Markie's gender wrong.

"Um, Mrs. Chilton," Pony started. "You said that Markie was a she right?"

Mrs. Chilton rolled her eyes, "Yes of course I said she is a she. Didn't your brother tell you that your cousin was a girl?"

"Mrs. Chilton, you never said Markie was a girl," Darry said. "All you said was her name was Markie, which sounds like a boy's name."

"I'm sorry, but you must have heard wrong, because I clearly said in our conversation on the phone Mr. Curtis, that Markie was indeed a girl."

Darry replayed their phone conversation in his head. Not once did Mrs. Chilton say Markie's gender. She only referred to her as Markie. Not wanting to cause a scene in the Terminal, Darry let Mrs. Chilton lead Pony, Soda, and himself to a bench where a red headed teenage girl sat gazing off into space.

"Ms. Curtis!"

Mrs. Chilton's sharp voice snapped the girl out of here daydream. She looked at Mrs. Chilton, then at the Curtis boys, her green eyes full of curiosity.

"Ms. Curtis, these are your cousins Darry," she pointed to Ponyboy. "Sodapop," she pointed to Darry. "And Ponyboy," she pointed to Sodapop.

The three brothers looked at each other, all three of them hearing the sarcasm in her voice as she said each of their names. None of the boys felt the need to correct the social worker, knowing she would not remember who was who.

"Well, I'll leave you four alone. I have a plane to catch back to Philadelphia."

She took a card out of her pocket, and handed it to Markie.

"Call me if you need anything at all or if they don't treat you right."

Markie nodded her head, pocketing the card.

"And Mr. Curtis, I'll be back in three weeks to check up on you to make sure you are providing a good home for Ms. Curtis."

"No worries Mrs. Chilton. Me and my brother will take good care of Markie."

"Yes well goodbye all."

Without another word, Mrs. Chilton walked away, gone from their lives for a mere three weeks. The four were silent for a moment as Darry, Soda, and Pony took in Markie, and Markie took in the three boys.

Sodapop was the first person to speak.

"I've always wanted a little sister," he said sitting down next to Markie. "I told my mom and dad when they were pregnant with Pony that I wanted it to be a girl so I could spoil her and play with her, and have lots of fun. Then of course they had Ponyboy over there, and I was really made 'cause he wasn't the sister I wanted. But it was cool 'cause I still got to play and have fun with him. But he never let me spoil him. Looks like I finally got my wish though. I'm so glad you're a girl!"

Markie's eyes went wide as she listen to her older cousin speak at an incredibly fast rate. Most of his words were running together, so she could only register half of what he was saying to her.

"Sodapop slow down there, even I can't understand what you're saying."

Sodapop stuck his tongue out.

"Well sorry I'm the only one excited about Markie finally getting here."

"Were all excited about her finally getting here," said Darry. "You just want to tell her your whole life story before we even had a chance to get her bags and get back to the house."

Soda jumped off the bench, "Of course! Of course! We've gotta introduce her to the gang! And then dinner right?"

Darry nodded his head, "If Markie feels up to it."

Darry noticed the scared look on Markie's face from Soda's sudden outburst of energy. It could take a person a while to get use to Soda's eccentric behavior, and Darry had a feeling that there would be plenty more scared looks from his younger cousin when she finally meet the gang.

"Well come on let's grab your bags," Darry said to Markie.

The red head nodded her head, standing up. For the first time, the three boys got a full look at their cousin. She was around an average high, with her red hair falling down to her shoulders in a mess of wild curls, which framed her heart shaped face with the pair of green eyes the boys had noticed earlier. The boys guessed she had not slept in days from the bags under her eyes. Darry noted how thin Markie looked, as if she had not eaten in weeks. He made a mental note to cook a large dinner that night and to make sure that Markie ate a large helping.

"Which bag is yours," Pony asked, as the four watched an array of bags in different shapes and colors glide past them.

Markie pointed to a pair of medium size purple suitcases. Darry grabbed the two suitcases, and began leading the group towards the exit. As they walked, Soda tried to strike up a conversation with Markie, who he noticed hadn't said a word since they met.

"What was it like living in Philadelphia? I heard it's real nice up there."

Markie shrugged her shoulders and kept walking, her eyes staring straight ahead. It wasn't she did not like talking, in fact she was always in trouble for talking in school. She just stop talking after the accident, as if someone had cut her vocal cords. But Soda was determined to get Markie to talk, and he continued asking questions until they got to the car.

"Do you like cars?" he asked. "I love them. I work at a gas station called the DX."

Markie shook her head no as she climbed into the red truck, Ponyboy behind her, and Soda behind him. Darry was on the other side of her, putting the key into the ignition. The truck roared to life, and Markie was on her way to her new home.

"Don't mind Sodapop," Ponyboy whispered so only Markie could hear. "He might seem nosy, but he really just wants to get to know you, ya know?"

Markie nodded her head, giving Ponyboy a smile to show she didn't think Sodapop was annoying at all. He actually reminded Markie of her mother, and how she would always ask a million questions about the tiniest things. Maybe it was a family trait.

"Well here we are. Home sweet home," Darry said, parking the truck.

Markie gave her new home a look over, noticing everything from the front porch to the fence that surrounded the house. It looked a little run down, but it had a certain charm to it that it feel homey. Markie could defiantly imagine herself living in the house. As she hoped out of Darry's truck, she could hear the sound of boys yelling coming from the house. Ponyboy noticed the confused expression on her face, and decided to remind her about the gang.

"When the gang found out we were taking in you, they decided to wait at the house to meet you. Of course they all though you were going to be a boy. It'll be interesting to see their faces when they realize you're a girl."

"Ponyboy come help with theses suitcases!" Darry yelled from the back of the truck.

Markie followed Pony wanting to help carry her own bags, but Sodapop wouldn't let her.

"Can't let a lady carry her own bags," he said. "It isn't right."

Markie rolled her eyes wand walked towards the front door. The yelling got louder as she got closer the house. The sound of bodies crashing against furniture filled Markie's ears, and she knew someone had broken something.

Darry kicked the screen door open, yelling two names, "Two-bit! Steve!"

Markie peeked around Darry's large body to see two boyswrestling each other, pieces of broken wood surrounding them on all sides. The first guy had dark hair, and was wearing a DX shirt. He had the second guy with hair the color of rust, and sideburns to match in a headlock.

"Say uncle!" dark hair yelled.

"No!"

"Say it!"

"No!"

"Say it!"

"No!"

"Steve! Two-bit!"

Steve and Two-bit heard Darry yell, and quickly let go of each other. They both looked up at an angry Darry pointing at each other.

"He started it!" they both said in unison.

"You ate the last piece of chocolate cake!' dark hair yelled.

"Well you turned off Mickey!' sideburns yelled back.

Markie giggled noticing that sideburns was wearing a Mickey Mouse shirt. She had never seen any boy brave enough to wear a shirt with the famous mouse on it. The two boys heard her giggling, and turned to look in her direction. Seeing them turning in her direction, Markie hide behind Darry, away from their curious eyes.

"Hey Darry who was that giggling?" dark hair asked.

"It's our cousin Markie!" Sodapop said.

Markie tried to protest as Sodapop grabbed her wrist, but no sound came out. She shut her eyes, letting her older cousin pull he into view. There was silence as everyone took in the newest Curtis.

"He's got boobs!"

"Two-bit!"

**And that is the end of chapter two. I hope you all liked it, and I hope that Markie does not come off as a Mary Sue. As for the gang, I hope I kept Soda, Pony, Darry, Two-bit, and Steve in character. Johnny and Dally are in the house, Markie just hasn't noticed them yet. **

**And I want to congratulate ****Indiana9311****, and kentuckylucky for guessing that Markie was a girl. **

**As always please leave a review, and constructive criticism is always wanted. **


	3. Markie Meets the Gang

**Hello to all my readers, here is another installment of Not What You'd Expect. But before I start the story, I want to reply to all the people who were kind enough to read my story, and answer a few of the questions that were asked. **

**  
****Paulina32196:**** It made me happy to read that you loved my story. As for Markie's full name, it is Markie Rose Curtis. Markie will explain why her mother named her Markie in a later chapter. But, I actually have met a girl named Markie at my elementary school. But whether or not that was her real name, I do not know.  
****tinkerbelle22:**** I am working on my typing. I sent this chapter to one of my friends to edit it for me so, hopefully this chapter turns out better then my first two.  
****seuss fan:**** Hey girl friend! Yeah I know about my grammar mistakes, but you know me. I put a smile on your face? Hey, that makes me smile!  
****bree123:**** I love the "He's got boobs," part too. It was a last minute rewrite, that I thought would make the chapter funnier. I'm glad someone liked it.  
****manthaS115:**** I thought the chapter was cute too.  
****smallncrazy91:**** Here is the update.  
****ronnie94:**** I wrote more.  
****Maximum Ride all the way:**** Thanks for saying my story was amazing.  
****Indiana9311:**** Yes Markie is going to fall for someone, but it won't be for a while. I try to draw the relationships out, before anything seriously happens. But the relat ionship will have its problems, and there will be a break-up. Markie will speak in one of the upcoming chapters, but it will take a seriously terrible event to get her to speak.  
****Not. Really.:**** Thank you so much for your helpful review. I'm sorry to disappoint you by making Markie a girl (and it's okay that you spelt her name wrong in the first review). But I'm happy that you said Markie doesn't appear to be a Mary-sue so far, and that I kept everyone in character, because that is hard for me. As for my grammar, I am working on it. **

**  
**Disclaimer: I do not own The Outsiders, or the characters in the book. The only thing I own, is the character Markie Curtis, and any other characters that might appear in my story that were not a part of the original novel.

Not What You'd Expect  
Chapter 3: Markie Meets the Gang

"He's got boobs!"

"Two-bit!"

Markie cracked one eye open. She saw the two boys who she guessed were Steve and Two-bit staring at her, both with shocked expressions on their faces. If she was not so nervous about meeting so many new people at once, she might have laughed at the two boys' expressions. Instead, she pulled her arm out of Soda's grip and hid behind Darry once again.

"Hey darling what you hiding behind Darry for? We don't bite," Steve said, getting up off the floor.

"Well, we don't bite till we get to know you better," Two-bit added, also getting up.

"She probably got a look at your two faces and got scared."

Markie peeked around Darry, seeing two more boys sitting on the couch staring at where she was hiding. She noticed the smaller of the two first. She took in his dark hair that was heavy greased, and his large eyes. He reminded Markie of a puppy that use to hang around her apartment back in Philadelphia. Her eyes moved over to the next boy. She shuddered as she took in his blond hair and cold eyes. Her senses all told her the same thing, this boy was trouble.

"Hey! We ain't scary looking!" Two-bit yelled at the blonde.

He looked at Markie, grinning, "You don't think were ugly do you doll?"

"Hey look she turns red when you talk to her," the blonde-haired boy said.

Two-bit smirked, "It think she has a crush on me."

Darry pushed Two-bit to the side walking into the living room, Markie following behind him.

"You wish, Two-bit."

He put Markie's suitcase on the floor, and then turned too looked at the four boys in the living room.

"In case you idiots haven't already figured it out, this here is Markie," he gestured to the silent girl who was staring at the floor, her face bright red. "You all know she is a girl thanks to Two-bit's loud outburst," he shot a glare at the rusty haired teen, who only grinned in response.

Darry rolled his eyes and turned to Markie, "Markie, this is the entire gang. That's Dallas Winston, Johnny Cade, Steve Randel, and Two-bit Matthews," he pointed to each boy as he said their names.

"Markie, huh. Is that your real full name?" Steve asked.

Markie nodded her head.

"What kind of name is that for a girl? It sounds more like a guy's name," Dallas said.

"She's a Curtis isn't she?" Two-bit said. "They all got weird names. What I want to know is why she hasn't said a single word since she walked in the door."

"She hasn't said a word since we picked her up," Sodapop said. "I've been trying to get her to talk the whole ride home, but she won't say a word."

"So she's an um ... oh what's that word Ponyboy when a person doesn't say anything?"

"A mute?"

Two-bit smiled, "Yeah that's right! Thanks! So you're a mute, right?"

Markie shrugged her shoulders. Reaching into her pocket, she pulled out a small note pad and pen. She flipped the pad open to a new page, and began writing something down. When she was finished, she handed the pad to Darry to read.

"Can you show me to my room? I'm tired," the note said.

" Sure thing kiddo. Follow me."

Darry picked her suitcase up again. Then Markie, Ponyboy, and Soda followed him to what would be her new room.  
"We thought you were going to be a boy, so we put a cot in Soda's and Ponyboy's room."

He kicked open the door giving Markie her first view of the room she would be living in from now on. She loved what she saw. Books were piled in almost every available space in the room. Markie loved to read any book she could get her hands on. When she found out she could not bring all her books with her to Tulsa, it felt like she had lost another family member. She had only managed to pack a few books from her large library at home, the rest she had donated to her local library.

She wrote something down on her note pad, and handed it to Soda who was closes to her. He smiled as he finished reading what she wrote.

"Ponyboy is the one who likes to read," he said, pointing to his younger brother. "He's read every book in this room."

"Not every book," Ponyboy said, "Only about half of them."

Markie wrote something else down, and handed the pad to Ponyboy.

"Sure you can borrow a couple of my books."

Markie's face lit up in a smile, and before Ponyboy could even register what was happening, he was pulled into a tight hug, courtesy of Markie.

"Aw group hug!" Sodapop shouted, his arms wrapping around the two younger teens. "Come on Darry join in."

Darry looked at the three, half-amused, half-shocked. Both Sodapop and Markie were grinning like Cheshire cats, though he had to admit, he liked how Markie looked when she smiled. It was the first time he had seen her with any kind of real emotion her face. Poor Ponyboy looked completely lost, stuck in the middle of a Curtis sandwich.

Darry kindly interrupted the group hug saying, "Alright you two, let Ponyboy go, and let's get your bags into this room."

Ponyboy looked relieved as Markie and Sodapop let go of him. He grabbed the abandoned suitcase by his feet, carrying it into the room that he and Sodapop now shared with Markie.

"We'll put a sheet up around your bed until we can clean out Pony's old room. Then we'll move you into there."

Markie scribbled something down, holding the pad up when she was finished so all three boys could read.

"I do not want to be any trouble. I can sleep in here it doesn't bother me none." read Markie's scribbled note.

"But social services won't like a teenage girl sharing a room with two teenage boys," Darry pointed out.

Markie started scribbling again, "That is true."

"Come on, you can unpack later," Soda said, pulling her wrist. "Darry already said when we got home and introduced you to the gang, we could all go out and get dinner."

The two ended up back in the living room where the rest of the gang was watching TV.

"Come on you guys, were going out to eat," Soda shouted, pulling Markie out the door, and into the darkening streets of Tulsa.

Markie heard the boys yelling before she saw them. Steve and Dallas ran past her and Soda, yelling about a loser paying for the meal.

"I'm not paying for the entire meal!" Soda laughed, letting go of Markie's wrist so he could run after the two boys.

Markie stood in the middle of the street, watching the three boys disappear into the night. She began questioning Sodapop's sanity, when the sound of feet pounding against the pavement filled her ears. She turned around slowly to see Two-bit running towards her, a wild grin on his face. Ponyboy and Johnny were not far behind him. As he got closer to Markie, he flung his arm out, grabbing Markie by her arm. He tugged at her arm, until she was running side by side with him.

"Can't let a lady pay for a meal all by herself can I?" he yelled.

Two-bit looked at the newest Curtis, and wanted to laugh. Her face was a mix between shock and fear. There was no doubt in his mind that where she came from, people normally did not run around in the street after each other.

"Two-bit you can't pay for the meal either!" Ponyboy yelled, as he passed Two-bit and Markie.

Two-bit looked at Markie, then Ponyboy, then Markie again. He shrugged his shoulders.

"He has a good point you know. Sorry doll."

He let go of Markie's wrist and kept on running after Ponyboy. Dumbfounded, Markie kept on running, keeping Two-bit and Ponyboy in her sight. She had not been in Tulsa for more than a few hours, and did not fancy getting lost in the rough looking neighborhood.

"Come on new Curtis, I know you can run faster than that! Johnny is gaining on you!" Two-bit yelled back at her.

Markie looked to her left, and sure enough, there was Johnny neck to neck with her.

"The Dingo is right up there. We only have to run a little longer," Johnny whispered.

A large sign loomed in the distance with the word DINGO in bright letters written across it. Markie sighed in relief, knowing that her suffering was going to end soon. She and Johnny ran into the Dingo together, tied for last place. Markie felt dizzy from running, and collapsed on the floor, panting and gasping for air. She could not remember the last time she had ran that hard. Johnny, who was in much better shape than Markie, leaned against the doorframe, panting.

"What was that all about?" he asked, panting.

Everyone in the gang except for Darry looked at each other, before shrugging their shoulders.

"Dally and me thought we make things interesting. So, we started a race for the Dingo," Steve said.

Soda gave his best friend a high five, "That was a pretty fun race."

Markie looked at Sodapop and Steve like they each had three heads. She made a mental note that if this was what they thought was fun, she was not going to hang around with them.


End file.
